Figurative artist Daryl Zang will celebrate the opening of “Becoming” in New York City on Tuesday, August 27, at Saint Peters Church, Lexington Avenue. The exhibition, represented by Elisa Contemporary Art, will hang 16 large scale oil on canvas paintings, representing the last ten years of the work and life of the Newtown resident.

The collection reveals Ms Zang’s personal journey through the challenges and joys of pregnancy, motherhood, wife and being a woman. Tenderness, play, relaxation, exhaustion and despair are rendered as seen through the touch of a mother’s hand, the frustration of caring for a toddler, and cherished private moments spent alone.

The work is strong and poignant. “Becoming” speaks to the metamorphosis of women on a universal level.

While focusing on the feminine, these paintings will also resonate with men as they are given a very private and authentic view into the emotional world of perhaps their wives, mothers, sisters and friends.

“Women’s lives are so multifaceted that the potential for subject matter is seemingly endless. There are themes common to all of us which are simply human,” said Ms Zang.

“My journey, and the story of this show, could not have culminated with a more perfect ending if I had written the script myself. On August 27, I will get my children ready for the first day of school and put my youngest on the bus to his first day of first grade,” she continued. “On that very same morning, my paintings will be carried into the gallery space at St Peter’s to be hung for the show. In one morning I will cross both a finish and starting line simultaneously, proud of what I have accomplished and the story I’ve told but also excited to begin a new chapter of my life and art.”

Daryl Zang’s work has been previously exhibited at the Michele & Donald D’Amour Museum of Fine Art in Springfield, Mass.; the 57th Annual National Exhibition of Contemporary Realism in Art, Mass.; and recent group shows in New York and Connecticut. Ms Zang earned her BFA at Syracuse University and pursued additional studies in Florence Italy.

More of Ms Zang’s work may be viewed on her website, at www.ZangStudios.com.

A special artist’s reception will be held on Thursday, September 12, from 6 to 8 pm. Saint Peter’s Church is at 619 Lexington Avenue; its entrance is on 54th Street between Lexington and Third Avenues.

A portion of all sales from this exhibit will be donated to The EverWonder Children’s Museum in Newtown.